Pontoon model of a three-deck ship of the line, in bone and

Lot n° 17

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Estimation :

12000 - 20000 EUR

Pontoon model of a three-deck ship of the line, in bone and - Lot 17

Pontoon model of a three-deck ship of the line, in bone and ebony, presented without sails. A true masterpiece, exceptional for the quality of its craftsmanship and the vessel of which it is a model. The ship is heavily armed with 110 cannons distributed over the three decks and the forecastles fore and aft. Remarkable! Ropes running across the bow and stern operate a mechanism to move the guns in and out of their ports. Ready to fire! ... Fire away! She's as detailed as you can get on the scale she's on. Despite this magnificence and profusion of the most faithful details, she is of a rare elegance. In other words, it's magic. Magic is rigging of rare sophistication. Note that the standing and running rigging are made of hair. Magical is the polychrome figurehead of a full-length warrior. The sculptures on the bow, stern and upper decks are magical. Armament details: 32 cannons (36 lbs.) including four escape cannons in the first battery, 30 cannons (24 lbs.) in the second battery, 30 cannons (18 lbs.) in the third battery and 18 cannons (8 lbs.) on the forecastles. The model is presented on its period base, inlaid with wood and geometric motifs. Circa 1810. Length HT: 57 cm. Hull length: 34 cm. Exceptional condition. A few very slight accidents and slight restorations of very high volleys, barely perceptible. Presented in a contemporary brass-framed display case circa 1930, dimensions: 66 x 50.5 x 26 cm. Sold as is Note: In 1793, when French troops occupied Belgian lands, threatening Dutch and British trade, war was declared. A great conflict (1793/1815) ensued between England and revolutionary France (1793/1802) first and Napoleonic France (1803/1815) later. The long sea and land wars culminated in England's complete triumph as the world's predominant maritime and imperial power. At the end of these twenty-two years of war, 67,000 French prisoners were recorded in England, many of them sailors. Senior officers were sometimes paroled to villages near the coast, while others were locked up in prisons and the infamous floating pontoons (unarmed warships). In England at the time, all these prisoners had the enormous advantage of being able to improve their lives in any way they could. This concession led to the development of a sizeable production economy. Products ranged from the simplest (boxes, sewing and smoking kits, combs, brushes, etc.) to the most elaborate: pontoon models. The quality of pontoon models varies enormously from one to another, but they are all worthy of interest and respect in view of the conditions in which they were made. Their dimensions can vary, most of them measuring around 30 cm, while the most prestigious ones measure over 60 cm and never much more than 90 cm. The latter, extremely rare, are generally true masterpieces. Some of the smallest pontoon models are made of wood, while others are made of bone (generally ox bone), a material that was readily and cheaply available to prisoners. They are the work of teams of prisoners, some specializing in planking, others in pulleys and sheepsheads, others in sculptures and figureheads, others in ropes, others in rigging... The tools were simple and limited: knives, scrapers, reamers, etc. made, for the most part, by the prisoners themselves.

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Pontoon model of a three-deck ship of the line, in bone and - Lot 17

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